NFL rival admits he respects moves Texans have made this offseason

The AFC South should be one of the more competitive divisions in the NFL heading into the 2024 season. While the Tennessee Titans are unlikely to be a threat, it's not hard to imagine the other three teams all vying for a playoff spot come January. The Houston Texans won the division last year, and they'll be opening the season on the road against the Indianapolis Colts, who haven't won it since 2014.

Nevertheless Indy is on the rise with young talent, especially second-year quarterback Anthony Richardson, who had his rookie season cut short by injury.  Richardson and the Colts should make a good first test for C.J. Stroud and the Texans , who have managed to upgrade their roster with a very aggressive offseason from general manager Nick Caserio. He's been so busy that it's earned the respect of at least one AFC South rival.

Here's what Colts linebacker E.J. Speed said about Houston recently, per KPRC2 .

"It was everything, man... They made some moves in the offseason that I respect, but I mean, coming back last year, we had AR. First game came out and played well and won the game. They won the game when it matters. Week One should be good. It’s 1-1 with our quarterbacks. We both got quarterbacks in the same year, and it will be a good tiebreaker."

The moves that Speed will have to respect the most were the trades for superstar wide receiver Stefon Diggs and Pro Bowl running back Joe Mixon. Aside from a relatively weak offensive line unit, Houston is absolutely loaded on offense at every position.

On defense the Texans mostly focused on their defensive line, signing Danielle Hunter, Denico Autry and Mario Edwards and bringing back Jerry Hughes for one of the league's best edge rush rotations. Linebacker is a question mark here, but everywhere else Houston is at least strong enough to stay competitive defensively.

The Texans are 2.5 point favorites over the Colts for the season opener.